WWE 2K23‘s latest “Ringside Report” confirmed every match that will be featured in this year’s 2K Showcase Mode. Unlike previous installments, the game will have you playing a variety of wrestlers as you take on John Cena in some of his most famous losses. The list starts with Cena’s main roster debut on SmackDown in 2002 and goes all the way up until his most recent singles match when he lost to Roman Reigns at SummerSlam 2021 with the Universal Championship on the line.
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All of the usual suspects are on the list, which you can see below. But there are two noticeable absences — Cena’s losing the WWE Championship to CM Punk at Money in the Bank 2011 and dropping the title to Bryan Danielson at SummerSlam 2013. But this was to be expected as both are currently under contract with All Elite Wrestling.
- John Cena vs. Kurt Angle (Kurt Angle Open Challenge), SmackDown, June 27, 2002
- John Cena vs. Brock Lesnar, Backlash 2003
- John Cena vs. The Undertaker, Vengeance 2003
- John Cena vs. Edge, New Year’s Revolution 2006
- John Cena vs. Rob Van Dam, ECW One Night Stand 2006
- John Cena vs. Edge, SummerSlam 2006
- John Cena vs. Triple H, Night of Champions 2008
- John Cena vs. Batista, SummerSlam 2008
- John Cena vs. Randy Orton, Hell in a Cell 2009
- John Cena vs. The Rock, WrestleMania 28
- John Cena vs. Brock Lesnar, SummerSlam 2014
- John Cena vs. AJ Styles, SummerSlam 2016
- John Cena vs. The Undertaker, WrestleMania 34
- John Cena vs. Roman Reigns, SummerSlam 2021
“Once it was decided that we’d be doing a second John Cena Showcase, the first thing we started thinking about was how to differentiate it from past Showcases, like our 2K15 Showcase that also focused on John Cena,” 2K wrote. “One thing that fans have mentioned over the years in regards to the mode is that playing as the same person for 12, 15, 20 matches can start to feel a little repetitive. So we started playing with the idea that instead of playing as John Cena, you’d play as his opponents. This way, each match would feel fresh, with new movesets and new strategies.”
2K Designer Dino Zucconi spoke with ComicBook’s Matt Aguilar last month about the game and the subject of Punk’s absence was brought up.
“When you’re working with the other property, it’s just one of those things. We understand the deal. We know that he’s probably not going to be available, and most likely, yeah, it’s just one of those things,” Zucconi said.
